UPPER DARBY TWP., Pa. – After years of planning, the Upper Darby School District says they are purchasing the shuttered Delaware County Memorial Hospital, which is right next to the high school, for $600,000.
What we know:
If everything goes as planned, Superintendent Dr. Daniel McGarry says closing is on August 13th.
“I know there are a lot of mixed feelings. We would have loved for it to remain a hospital,” said Dr. McGarry. “If anyone were to take over this property, I feel we were the best to have done so.”
It’s the first sale since the for-profit owner of Crozer Health, Prospect Medical Holdings, announced the closure of the health system, and shut the doors of its two remaining hospitals in Delaware County earlier this year.
“It was a great hospital, great people worked there, but they need to have a practical solution about filling that space right there and seems sad to waste a building,” said Jamie Chowdhury, a Delaware County resident. “I think it will be a good use of the space.”
Dr. McGarry says they are almost certain they will have to knock down the building, but will still explore that opportunity again before doing so.
A long-term goal is to build a building that could be used as a swing space as they update their other facilities, then turn it into an off-branch campus for Upper Darby High School.
What they’re saying:
“Ultimately we’d like to make it an off-shoot branch part of the high school campus as a STEAM type of facility, alleviating some of the overcrowding in the high school and providing different educational opportunities to high school students,” he says. “We’re securing this for a long-term plan, we’re not going to be able to afford right now to go out and do all of this.”
Dr. McGarry says it’s too early to say what any of the costs would entail after the purchase, or how that could impact taxpayers.
While it’s not healthcare, Dr. Monica Taylor, chair of the Delaware County Council, says if the building was going to sit abandoned, they are very happy the school district was able to step in.
“Upper Darby is a very densely populated location, so there’s not much available in terms of property,” she said. “So, I think this is a win for the community.”
The sale agreement came after Prospect filed a motion to abandon Delaware County Memorial and Taylor Hospital properties. Dr. Taylor says in bankruptcy court this week, an attorney for Prospect claimed that a potential buyer toured Taylor Hospital.
She says they are still waiting to see how things will shake out in terms of the funding that Prospect still owes.
“This was a way for them to get out of some of that, but there is still a process through the bankruptcy that we’ll see if any of it is able to come back to the county, the municipality, the school district,” she said
Dr. Taylor says bidders have come forward for Crozer Chester Medical Center and Springfield Hospital, but Prospect has not moved forward yet.
“We are holding out hope for healthcare in the other locations,” she said.
FOX 29 reached out to an attorney for Prospect Medical Holdings. We will bring you their response when we receive it.